Professor of Chemical Engineering
Department of Chemical Engineering
University of California, Berkeley
Faculty Senior Scientist
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Molecular Thermodynamics for Some Applications in BiotechnologyAs biotechnology sweeps the world, it is appropriate to remember that the great virtue of thermodynamics is its broad range of applicability. As a result, there is a growing literature describing how chemical thermodynamics can be used to inform processes for old and new biochemical products for industry and medicine. A particular application of molecular thermodynamics concerns separation of aqueous proteins by selective precipitation. For this purpose, we need phase diagrams. For constructing such diagrams, we need to understand not only the qualitative nature of phase equilibria of aqueous proteins but also the quantitative intermolecular forces between proteins in solution. Some examples are given to show how aqueous protein-protein forces can be calculated or measured to yield a potential of mean force and how that potential is then used along with a statistical thermodynamic model to establish liquid-liquid and liquid-crystal equilibria. Such equilibria are useful not only for separation processes but also for understanding diseases like Alzheimer's, cataracts and sickle-cell anemia that appear to be caused by protein agglomeration. |
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Professor of Chemical Engineering at the University of
California, Berkeley and Faculty Senior Scientist for Lawrence
Berkeley National Laboratory, Dr. John M. Prausnitz is best known for
his research into the molecular thermodynamics of phase
equilibria. With over 550 publications to his name, as well as one
textbook and five monographs, the results of his research are used by
chemical engineers throughout the world for chemical process design,
especially for separation operations in the natural gas, petroleum,
petrochemical, and polymer industries. Most recently, his research
efforts have focused on fundamental studies of gels, unusual polymers
such as dendrimers, electrolyte solutions, and biothermodynamics for
separation operations in biotechnology.
Professor Prausnitz earned his BChE from Cornell University in 1950. From there, he went on to the University of Rochester, earning his M.S. in 1951, before completing his doctoral studies at Princeton University in 1955. He became a faculty member at the University of California, Berkeley in 1955, where he has remained since becoming a full professor in 1963. In addition to his appointment with Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in 1975, he has taken on a number of other advisory positions, including consultant to the National Bureau of Standards and several industrial companies concerned with petroleum, cryogenic, or polymeric processes. Throughout his tenure, he has also served on numerous editorial boards, including the J. Phys. Chem. (1976-81), AIChE Journal (1973-77), IEC Fundamentals Quarterly (1978-89), Fluid Phase Equilibria (1970- ), J. Chem. & Eng. Data (1993-96), and Industrial and Chemical Engineering Research (1996-99). In recognition of his outstanding research in the area of thermodynamics and phase equilibria, Professor Prausnitz has received numerous accolades. Most notably, he is a member of both the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering, as well as the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Among the other awards to which he has laid claim are the Solvay Prize in 1990 and the Carl-von-Linde Gold Medal in 1987. He has also earned a number of honorary degrees, including Doctor of Engineering from the University of L'Aquila, Italy in 1983, Doctor of Engineering from the Technical University of Berlin, Germany in 1989, and Doctor of Science from Princeton University in 1995.
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